Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Tent Camp Assessment Report Iraq January 2008

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1 Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Tent Assessment Report Iraq January 2008 Background: Although displacement slowed significantly during 2007, internally displaced persons (IDPs) continue to live in tent camps. These camps usually lack basic services, provide inadequate shelter during cold weather, and are set up in remote areas. For these reasons, and a cultural aversion to the indignity and lack of privacy camp life entails, camps are viewed as a last resort for shelter and are treated as a temporary measure. The IDP population in camps therefore fluctuates considerably. Some camps have been opened in anticipation of displacement that did not materialize, while others have been closed after IDPs left due to their substandard living conditions. IOM nationwide assessments find that the recently displaced rank shelter as their number one priority need. IOM does not endorse the establishment of camps and instead encourages assistance to the local communities that host IDPs. However, some IDPs are forced to reside in camps and, since camps usually lack services, are especially vulnerable and in need of humanitarian assistance. In coordination with the Iraqi government s Ministry of Displacement and Migration (MoDM), the Iraqi Red Crescent Organization (IRCO), local authorities, and other stakeholders, IOM monitors visited camps throughout Iraq to assess the IDP situation 1. This assessment is complementary to the group settlement assessments that UNHCR provides. Summary: Governorate name District No. Of families, Oct 07 Current No. Families Baghdad Sabaa Qusoor Al-Istiklal 35 Closed December 2007 Diyala Al Salam Al Muqdadiya - Closed November 2007 Missan Missan Amarah 1 0 Najaf Al-Manathera Al-Manathera Ninewa Gardasin Akre Qadissiya Al-Karahma Diwaniya Sulaymaniya Qalawa Sulaymaniya Sulaymaniya Esewa Pshdar Under Construction Closed (never occupied) Thi-Qar Al-Moukaa Al-Nassriya Under Construction Under Construction Wassit Kut Kut 14 Closed January 2008 Please note that since camps are continually being established or closed due to the fluctuating nature of displacement, this assessment is not exhaustive and information is continuously changing. 1 This report considers only tent IDP camps. Please note that many camp-like group settlements also exist in Iraq, including spontaneous settlements created by IDPs, or public buildings and former military facilities inhabited by IDPs. There are also multiple refugee camps in Iraq.

2 IDP Tent s in Iraq, January 2008 D A H U K Fayda Gardasin E R B I L N I N E W A Qalawa S U L A Y M A N I Y A H K I R K U K S A L A H A L - D I N A l l D I Y A L A S a l l a m / D y a l l a S a b a a - Q u s o o r c a m p B A G H D A D A N B A R K E R B A L A B A B Y L O N W A S S I T Kut IDPs camp Al-Karama A l l - M a n a t h e r a C a m p Q A D I S S I Y A Missan M I S S A N N A J A F A l l - M o u k a a T H I - Q A R C a m p Closed camp A ctive camp Governorate center Governorate M U T H A N N A B A S R A H 2

3 Baghdad Sabaa Qusoor was located in the Sabaa Qusoor area near a gas factory about 25 km from Baghdad centre, in the Bab Al-Shaam sub-district of Al-Istiklal district. The nearest landmark is a service station approximately 2 km from the camp. IRCO established this camp in May/June 2007 to accommodate families who fled from Al-Anbakiya village in Al-Khalis district, Diyala. The camp consisted of 14 tents, each able to house 10 persons. Originally there were 35 families in the camp. IRCO continued to manage the camp and provide food and non-food items, however the camp was in a remote areas without access to public water and electricity. There were only two bathrooms (one for women and one for men). The camp closed in December The 35 families dispersed, some to their place of origin and others to public buildings in Al Islah, the nearest village. Diyala Al Salam was established by the IRCO to respond to displacement due to operations by the Multi-National Forces in Iraq (MNF-I) in Diyala. The camp received IDPs from Khanaqin district and later those fleeing Al-Ibady village in Al- Muqdadiya district. The camp was composed of 80 tents and was located in Hay Palestine inside a former sports club. It had an external wall and services such as water and electricity. The camp hosted 160 families, about 1,012 individuals. IRCO, MoDM, and a local charity provided food, non-food items, and tents to the IDPs. After military operations subsided, the camp closed in November 2007 since many of the IDPs were leaving. The tents were returned to IRCO and the MoDM Diyala office. Missan Missan is located 5 km south of Amarah City on the Missan-Basrah highway, near a silo and gas factory just before the main checkpoint on the highway. IRCO established this camp in February 2007 in cooperation with MoDM. The camp was established on 10,000 m 2 land, surrounded by wire fence with one gate guarded by Iraqi police to protect the camp s assets. The center of the camp has one road provided with 10 lights, but only two of them are working. There are 10 bathrooms and 10 toilets divided into 5 groups (each with 2 bathrooms and 2 toilets), one building to function as a kitchen, and 9 water tanks (one of which is inoperable). 3

4 Initially the camp was established to accommodate IDPs who had been evicted from school buildings and IDPs registered by MoDM. The camp originally contained 40 tents, able to accommodate 400 persons in total. Now only two torn tents are set up and 38 tents have been set aside in case the camp does not close and receives new IDP families. However, harsh weather conditions have destroyed most of the tents. The camp was managed by IRCO, MoDM, and the Provincial Council of Amarah City. MoDM and IRCO distributed food and non-food items in the camp. There is only one road in the camp, making movement very difficult during the winter. There is no maintenance, and Amarah is too far away for inhabitants to access medical services and markets there. There is no electricity or health care, and the camp toilets are not maintained or supplied. Due to the poor conditions, almost all residents left the camp months ago and the remaining two families recently left the camp for Basrah governorate after the local governorate announced that the camp would be closed if the number of families were less than ten. No IDPs are currently in the camp, although it is not officially closed. Najaf Al-Manathera is the largest and most well established IDP tent camp in Iraq. It is located in the southern region of Najaf governorate, about 17 km from Najaf city centre and 2 km from Al-Manathera. The camp is located on land formerly used as a wood factory, about 500 meters from the main street that connects Al-Manathera district with Najaf city. It is close to Al-Manathera Mill, which is also known as Abo Skheer Silo. MoDM established this camp in cooperation with IRCO in January 2007 to accommodate IDPs who had been illegally squatting on public property and were being evicted. There are 400 tents (up from 350 in October), each 9 m 2 with a capacity of 4 persons, although an average of six persons share one tent. The camp has two generators, a water network, and 25 water tanks, but there is no centralized garbage collection or disposal and there is no health center. The camp is managed by the MoDM Najaf branch in cooporation with the IRCO, and local police provide protection. Throughout 2007 and into 2008, various humanitarian organizations have provided assistance, including clothes, blankets, food, hygiene kits, shoes, electric heaters, water tanks, tents, and financial assistance (donated by IRCO, NGOs, religious organizations, UNHCR, IOM, MoDM, etc). residents rely heavily on outside assistance for food because many have not transferred their PDS food ration cards due to a lack of documentation. For those who do receive food rations, rations are often incomplete. In July 2007, MoDM temporarily closed the camp to new IDPs due to severe overcrowding. This overcrowding led to rioting among the IDPs in August, and a fire in September destroyed several tents. 4

5 In 2007, MoDM was able to secure more land and resources to expand the camp. There are currently 250 families in the camp. In the past week, MoDM handed over about 100 caravans (trailers) to IDP families in the camp. Each caravan contains two bedrooms, a toilet, and a small kitchen. One hundred twenty (120) families moved into the caravans. The caravans are not connected to water or sewage networks. There are 250 students in this camp, and the nearest school is located about 2-3 km away, so a religious institution leases buses to transport the students to school. Unemployment, overcrowding, and lack of privacy continue to cause significant tension among the camp s inhabitants. Ninewa Gardasin camp is located in a valley in the northern Gardasin sub-district of Akre district, Ninewa. This area is de facto under the administration of Dahuk authorities and is therefore sometimes considered part of Dahuk governorate. The camp was established in May 2007 to house 150 Kurdish Sunni families who fled Ninewa due to threats during April 2007 and had nowhere to live. Other IDPs have since arrived, with the most recent being sixteen families displaced from Mosul in January The camp is managed by the Kurdistan Regional Government. The camp contains 156 tents. IRCO, NGOs, ICRC, IOM, UNHCR and other actors have distributed food and non-food items to the IDPs. Another NGO has constructed twelve toilets and baths, but they are not connected to a water system. IOM has distributed food and non-food items (fuel, fuel tanks, winter clothing, and plastic sheeting), and is currently constructing drainage channels and distributing more fuel. IDPs currently rely on a well and water trucking for their water. Private generators are used for electricity. One primary school and one secondary school exist in Gardasin sub-district, but they are overcrowded and require additional classrooms. One health center is available, also in Gardasin, but it lacks medication and staff. Unemployment is high, especially among young adults/youth. IDPs are in need of generators, additional bathrooms, food and non-food items, improved tents, and medicine. Qadissiya Al-Karahma is in Saniya subdistrict (formerly known as Al- Kashfee) in the Diwaniya district of Qadissiya governorate. The camp is located about 10 km north of Diwaniya on property owned by the Education Directorate of Diwaniya as a Boy Scout holiday camp established in The IDP camp was established by the Qadissiya 5

6 Provincial Council on 17 March 2006 in preparation for displacement following the bombing of the Samarra Al-Askari Mosque in February The Provincial Council manages this camp in coordination with MoDM. The camp manager is a police officer commanding three teams: a police team, medical team and fire response team. MoDM and IRCO donated 40 tents, each with a capacity of four persons. There are three sanitation units (toilets and bathing facilities) and one generator, but the generator does not provide sufficient electricity. One water pipe is connected to the camp. Children attend a nearby school and have access to a playground. The number of residents remains at 20 families, the same figure as in October. All families are extremely poor. NGOs, IRCO, the Iraqi Army, and others have been assisting the families in this camp with food and non-food items. residents report little assistance, however, and have even threatened to go on a hunger strike to bring attention to their situation. They say they need health care, kerosene, food, non-food items, improved tents and employment. Sulaymaniya Qalawa is located on open land southeast of Sulaymaniya centre in the Sharwani area. The nearest landmark is the Rizgari fuel station. IRCO and the local authorities in Sulymaniah established this camp on 15 June 2006 to accommodate 70 Arab Sunni families who were displaced from Baghdad and Diyala. The numbers have increased to 186 displaced families and 17 squatters, for a total of 203 families. The camp is managed by the KRG Sulaymaniya administration and is under the protection of the Sulaymaniya security office. Residents have received assistance from IRCO, NGOs, UNHCR, ICRC and IOM, including food, non-food items, water, kerosene, and tents. Local authorities provided financial assistance. There was a mobile medical team that visited the camp and supplied some medicine with the support of local authorities. The families live in very poor conditions without access to proper sanitation, garbage disposal, or electricity. Families are in need of kerosene, food, non-food items, a mobile medical team, and proper santitation. The tent camp in Esewa sub-district (under construction in the last report), set up 24 km southeast of Qaladiza, was never occupied due to harsh cold weather and a lack of services in the camp. The anticipated IDPs instead either rented houses or took shelter with relatives in nearby Esewa town. The camp has been closed and the tents have been stored by the mayor of Esewa. Thi-Qar Al-Moukaa is located by the old Al-Qudis Army camp, near the northern gate of Nassriya city in Al- Sinnya sub-district. The camp is about 10 minutes by car from Nassriya city centre. 6

7 Construction of the camp began in mid-2006, and MoDM and IRCO are still working together to finalize construction. IRCO has hired a construction company to build a block kitchen and set up about 100 tents with paved floors. MoDM will manage it once it is complete. This camp is intended to accommodate IDPs who are living illegally in public buildings and threatened with eviction. Wassit Kut was located in an amusement park near the Al-Rabeaa and Al-Sharqiya neighborhoods within Kut city center. The Wassit IRCO branch established the camp on 22 March 2006 to accommodate IDPs entering Wassit who had nowhere else to stay. MoDM managed the camp since its establishment and provided non-food items such as mattresses, blankets, and water tanks. IRCO and religious organizations also provided assistance. The camp consisted of 13 tents occupied by 13 families with an average of eight people per tent. These have now moved to a new complex in Al Dijeli district. The camp closed on 17 January For further information on internal displacement in Iraq, please contact Dana Graber Ladek, Iraq Displacement Specialist, at dgraber@iom-iraq.net ( ). 7